Professor Gary Murphy:

I agree completely. I do not disagree at all with the Deputy. Going back to the point I made to Deputy Jim O’Callaghan in regard to when we were discussing this subject with the Department six or seven years ago, lobbying regulation is not about stopping people making representations or stopping good ideas being brought to Members of the Oireachtas, like the members of this committee, who can then bring them to the floor of the Dáil and Seanad for discussion. I do not think there is anything in this proposed Bill or in the existing Act that stops such endeavours.

I was distraught last year when the former Minister of State and the organisation he was going to be employed by sought legal advice about the situation, as distinct from talking to the commission. That situation went to the heart of a difficulty some people have with over-literal interpretations and seeking legal advice in that regard. I am with the Deputy on the role of the public representative and for that reason elections are important and people should vote in them. Going back over the last five or six years since the original Act was initiated, there has been nothing that would stop such activity.